Today we’d like to introduce you to Britain Simons
Hi Britain, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I work in entertainment and social media, now, but I grew up innocently disconnected from anything entertainment or public. I was raised in a small mountain town in Colorado. That meant a ton of snow, hiking and being spoiled by a beautiful terrain. My Dad built cabins and my Mother sold insurance. Though they separated when I was young, they were both involved parents, that encouraged my creativity. I discovered community theater- to overcome stage fright, and fell in love with performing. I thought I would be an engineer, earn scholarships, and work a quiet desk job, but life had other plans.
I felt a magnetic pull to be on stage, literally and figuratively. I wanted to be an uplifting source of joy, inspiration, and even the “escape” from people’s daily stress, fear and concerns. Robin Williams was my hero. Like many, his humor saved my spirit on numerous occasions. I wanted to be “that” for others, so I switched gears, auditioned for a renowned theater program at Baylor University, and thankfully, was accepted. My parents only stipulation for leaving engineering behind was that I get a good education. Acting, it was! I challenged myself, earned my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, and even completed my certificate at the National Theater Institute program. I honed my skill set, but more importantly, adopted the motto, “Risk, Fail, Risk Again.”
Fresh out of University, I moved to Los Angeles to try my hand at Hollywood. Determined to never be a typical actor/ waiter in between auditions, I began production assistant (PA) work for Indi Films. It was hard, thankless work, so there was plenty of opportunity. I booked some great Acting gigs, as well. I did a mini-promo series for Disney. I worked some high profile commercials for mainstream brands, and even a supporting role in a Lifetime Movie. But, the thing- that no one sees, are the hundreds of failed auditions, callbacks and missed opportunities. It wears on you. Imagine preparing days (memorizing scripts), driving to interviews (aka auditions), seeing dozens of duplicate “You’s” in the waiting room, and waiting in agony for a call that 99% of the time never comes. It really gives you a thick skin. It’s called “the Grind” for a reason. I saw many hopefuls come and go, but I persisted.
I met a wonderful woman, found myself working more Network TV/ film production, and continued believing in my path. This included working “Avatar 2,” the show “How to Get Away With Murder,” and dozens more, behind the scenes. I “day played” film production work, which means there’s no credit involved being the “extra hand” on big shoot days, but the work was steady. I made connections. I still acted, but then Covid hit. The world locked down and no one was working in Hollywood. This meant I had to take my skills elsewhere. But, even in that uncertainty, I had the honor and joy of marrying my incredible wife, Kristy.
Social media became my new home. Not on purpose, mind you. I just had the bravery to speak my truth with confidence to a wider audience, and people responded en masse. Facing criticism, trolls and the fear of getting it wrong so publicly. I built an audience of over 300,000 followers. I turned a private obsession with research and truth, to a public community. Again, willing to “Risk, fail. Risk again.” Starting a small business of educating the public on natural healing, and helping affiliate businesses improve their social media presence.
Even then, I soon faced the long arm of censorship in America. As TikTok was monetizing with established pharmaceutical companies, and facing an outright ban from Biden-Harris administration, they began to allegedly remove alternative information from the platform, including traditional herbal remedies. Citing “misinformation” in their terms of service, I and hundreds of other large creators were banned. Ironic, considering I mainly cited the NIH, Science Direct, and PubMed for my content sources. All official “.gov” sources.
Today, I still persist. I have one foot in the door with film, but my new passion is with my online community. My Instagram community is vibrant. I’m regrowing on other platforms. Many companies still reach out to collaborate. And, I’m developing educational courses, on my own platform that cannot be banned or controlled by bullish corporations and media giants. The goal is to build a resource that anyone can have access to. Two courses, I’m currently developing and excited about are teaching, are “Confidence in social media content creation” and some general educational courses (soon to be announced). More than anything, I want to have a positive impact on people’s lives, health, and future goals. It gives me purpose.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely has been far from a smooth road or ride, along the way. Doing anything of value in the world, you’ll soon discover an onslaught of competition, roadblocks, criticism, financial hits, setbacks and personal doubt. I’ve had years of feeling like I trekked 5 steps forward and 7 steps back. I’ve had zero dollars in the bank, been de-platformed, trolled and even worked the humbling side jobs, to get by. My saving grace is the core knowing that my life’s purpose is greater than me, so I’m ridiculously persistent.
Early in my career, I had the naïve belief that if I worked to be the best, I would easily carve out and earn my accomplishments. Boy, was I wrong. The real world is brutal and unforgiving. At every level of measurable success, you will find peers that are smarter, more qualified, and better positioned to get what you want. This is where I had to really change my mindset. Once I started genuinely caring more about connections and people, than getting my desires fulfilled (what I wanted)… I started seeing a real difference in career momentum.
Being of service to others makes you far more valuable than being of service to your own ego. Once I started asking myself, “How can use my skills and talents to find solutions to help others, with their problems,” instead of “I’m so good. Why is no one hiring me?” the doors started opening. Another big lesson, was actively creating and producing a product of value, instead of waiting for the opportunity. My product being social media content and information. Waiting for permission from the mythical job, funding, boss, etc. to give me opportunities was causing me to waste away with apathy. Taking the reins, despite the challenges, made all the difference in my success.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
It’s an odd thing to toot your own horn, but I think if you’re transparent it can actually serve to be an inspiration to those stuck on their own journey. Even if you have a rough go of it and you’ve been dealt a bad hand, you can still break the mold. You can live a version of your dreams and be fulfilled, even if it’s not the one you first intended.
Personally, I wanted to be a respected actor. I could care less about the money or fame. I just wanted to be a source of joy for as many people as humanly possible. Entertainment seemed like the most direct path to follow. I’m no celebrity by a long shot, but I’m proud that I was able to get a taste of that experience. Coming fresh into a well established industry, not knowing anyone, and carving a path is something to be excited about. Being able to flip through channels at a friend’s house years later, to see a movie you’re in, is a satisfying feeling. I’m proud of that.
I didn’t get the leading roles I dreamt of (yet), but I learned a ton. I grew my foundation of knowledge and skills to new heights. I took every failure (and there were many) as learning opportunities to observe, participate and improve. Little did I know, I was doing the Mr. Miyagi “Wax on, wax off” of being a resilient public figure and leader. Today, I create freely available social media content to educate and improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. People say the follower buzzword too often. Really, it’s a community of like minded people sharing our experiences, revelations and actively growing together.
If you ask me now, what I’m proud of, that’s it. Being a community leader. I’m proud to inspire positive changes, critical thinking, improved wellbeing and connecting people with core ideas. I help other people and businesses, with an altruistic mission, grow their following. And, I help my community improve their lives. Seems like the ultimate win-win. My purpose is bigger than me. What I’m known for, now, is being able to serve a growing movement of people on social media. My only obstacles on that bigger scale are time, consistently showing up, and making sure I pay enough attention to the business side of things to keep this whole train moving.
What’s next?
There’s a ton on my bucket list for the future, but everything happens in stages and steps. I really don’t know exactly where my path will lead, and that unknown is actually exciting to me. Even if I fail at one thing, there’s so much wisdom to be carried forward to the next success.
Maybe, my company, Britain Simons Now, will take off and we can develop an app. I’ve spoken with some leading figures in medical research on possibly helping to promote incredible new technologies for health. I have no idea how people will respond to my educational courses in development, but many have shared their appreciation and love for my teaching style. So, it will be fun to see where that goes. I’ll definitely meet and work with more industry leaders and new budding business owners. That’s the beauty of entrepreneurship, there’s always a need to connect companies with the audience that could benefit from their presence. There’s books I’d like to write, and some I need to finish. I’ve written some screenplays that are on the back burner. Maybe I’ll be able to give my creative touch, acting or writing, to some more movies and television work. Who knows? That’s what makes life an adventure.
Whatever big changes play out in my career, I will continue to give all my creative energy to being a positive force in the world. Like the allegory of Sisyphus, I have to keep the ball rolling with every ounce of momentum I gain. I cannot wait to be seen or get permission, from any concept of authority, to do what I do best.
Pricing:
- Visit www.britainsimonsnow.com for Social Media updates
- Visit www.britainsimons.com for TV and Film queries
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.britainsimonsnow.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/britainsimons/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@britainsimonsnow
- Other: https://www.britainsimons.com
Image Credits
Britain Simons (all)
